Britain is facing a growing threat of chlorine attack on its soil by UK jihadists returning home from Syria and Iraq, chemical warfare experts warn. Bombs containing chlorine are said to be the “chemical weapon of choice” for terrorists.

Counter-terrorism police are taking steps to diminish the danger
of bombs laced with chlorine, The Times of London has learned.

Colonel Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, formerly of the Army’s
Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Regiment and is
currently one of the leading chem warfare experts, is calling on
the authorities to strengthen controls on the sale of chlorine.

“As more jihadists return to this country there is a growing
chance of a chlorine bomb attack. That to me outs it through the
threshold where we should look into this seriously,” he told
the Times.

Although chlorine is most commonly used for disinfecting surfaces
and purifying water, it can be deadly if inhaled. There are tight
controls on the sale of the chlorine gas in certain countries,
including Iraq. However, in Britain it is possible to buy 90 tons
of the substance without a license.

Colonel says there is a high possibility an improvised explosive
could be made, adding the gas used in bombs often comes from the
cylinder on the back of the household fridges.

"Somebody could go to a waste site where people chuck away
fridges and get a whole bunch of these things and blow them
up," De Bretton-Gordon told the Times.

Fears over possible chemical attack on the UK soil have increased
after improvised explosive devices were discovered in the city of
Tikrit located in northern Iraq. The city was retaken by the
government forces from Islamic State militants this year and it
was revealed that up to 25 per cent of explosives contained
chlorine.

“It is what makes Iraq and Syria and returning jihadists the
No 1 issue that security services are going to be looking
at,” counterterrorism expert Olivier Guitta told The Times.
“I don’t want to scare people, but that is the reality of
things.”

In March, De Bretton-Gordon warned that a chlorine gas attack
could happen “on a train or tube or even at a big football
match.”

UK counter-terrorism police say they monitor purchases of
chlorine as well as other materials that could be used in
bomb-making to avoid any stockpiling. One policing source has
confirmed to the newspaper that the units were aware of the
possibility of terrorists using a chlorine bomb on British soil.